Board transfer device



Aug. 16, 1932. C, ABSME|ER 1,871,832

BOARD TRANSFER DEVICE Filed Jan. 2, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet l ggg: n 'l' 'i'i H a :2 t l I n l & gg 8 k i a g,

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ATTO Y AU8- 16, 1932- c. ABSMEIER BOARD TRANSFR DEVICE Filed Jan. 2, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet lNvE QQL .HBS/W505i?. Mvg? l ATTOR Y Patented Aug.` 16, 1932 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CARL ABSMEIEB, F MAYWOOD, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOB TQ UNITED STATES GYTSUE 00x- PANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION 0F ILLINOIS BOARD TRANSFER DEVICE Application med January 8, 1829. Serial lo. 829,750.

This invention relates to conveyors for handling sheet material and has reference more particularly to conveyors for introducing plaster boards into drying kilns.

6 n the feedin plasterboard an the like, into drying kilns, it is desirable to have inclined roller conveyors of considerable width lead-in into the drying kilns, and to supply boar s two or more` abreast, to said inclined conve ors so that two or more lines of plasterboar are constantly moving through the drying kilns to increase the capacity thereof. In order to y supply these plaster boards in a pluralit of lines, or

several abreast, it is necessa to' ave a transfer device which will trans er the boards to different operating positions on the inclined roller conveyors.

An object 'of this invention, therefore, is to provide a mechanism for automatically transl ferring boards to the desired operating points on the inclined roller conveyor.

Another object of the invention is to provide a transfer mechanism of theclass described, which is actually intermittently and automatically by the plaster boards; also to improve transfer devices in other respects hereinafter specified and claimed.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification,

in which Fig. 1 is a plan view of my improved transfer device,

Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation through the transfer v device,

Fig. 3 is an elevation of the clutch and operating mechanism,

Fig. 4 is an elevation of the board tripping device, and

Fig. 5 is a sectional elevation` through the transfer devicetaken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 1.

In the preferred form of the invention, a roller conveyor 10 is inclined slightly and delivers into an elongated, continuous drying kiln not shown. This roller conveyor preferably has a plurality of sets of rollers 11 of short length which aid in keepingithe boards straight and direct same head on into 5 the kiln. It should be understood that any of sheet material, such asV other type of conveyor leading into the kiln may be used if desired. A sett' conveyor 12 having rollers 13' is provide some of said rollers being provided with a pulley 14 driven by abelt, chain or other form of transmission 15 so that the laster boards are positively moved along sald setting conveyor 12. The inclined kiln feed conveyor 10 is spaced apart from the setting conveyor 12, and between said conveyors is -located a transfer conveyor 16 having rollers 17, some of which are provided with pulleys 18 driven by a belt 19 from a motor 20. A lower frame work 21 is provided with car wheels 22 rotatably supported on brackets 23, said car wheels engaging tracks 24 which are supported in any suitable way, such-as on Hoor or ceiling beams 25. Thus the transfer conveyor'16 is mounted to reciprocate back and forth, and said transfer conveyor isvwider 70 than the setting conveyor 12 but not as wide as the inclined conveyor 1,0. Y Therelative widths of the conveyors may, however, be varied as desired.

In order to reciprocate the transfer conveyor 16 at pre-determined intervals so as to first receive a plaster board, and then move said plaster board opposite a given line of travel on the inclined conveyor 10, I provide an automatic mechanism forv accomplishing said reciprocation. This mecha.- nism preferably consists of a pair of connecting rods 27,' each pivotally secured at one .end toa pivot pin 28 on the conveyor 16 and being also pivotally secured at the other end to a pin 29 secured to the end of a crank 30. Each crank 30 is secured to the end of crankshaft 31, the latter being rotatabl mounted in suitable bearings 32. The sha 31 may be intermittently rotated by any-suit- 9 able mechanism and for'this purpose a'spur gear 33 is secured thereto, saidgear meshln with a pinion 34 which is secured to a sha 35. The shaft 35 is provided with a clutch 36 one part of which is mounted on a sleeve 95 37 which is connected to aworm wheel in a worm housing 38. A suitable worm not shown meshes with the worm wheel, ,said4 worm being secured on a shaft 39. A sprocket pinion 40 is secured to the end of the 1 p worm shaft 39 and is connected by a chain 41. or other suitable driving means, to a motor 41a.

In order to cause the intermittent operation of the clutch 36, a collar 43 is rotatably mounted on shaft 35, said collar having ears 44 which are connected by rods 45 to the clutch member 36.- A coil compression spring 46 is mounted on the shaft 35 between the collar 43 and clutch member 36, said spring normally tending to hold the clutch member out. of engagement so that the shaft 35 does not rotate. A bell crank lever is pivoted on pin 47, said pin being secured in a bracket 48. One arm 49 of said lever eX- tends downwardly and engages against the annular surface of the collar 43. A clockwise movement of the bell crank lever, as seen in Fig. 3, causes the lever arm 49 to move the collar 43 to the left so that a shoulder 50 on said collar 43 rides up on an an nular shoulder 51 formed on the bracket 48, thus causing the clutch 36 to engage and rotate the shaft 35 through one revolution,

after which the shoulder 5() again drops into' place thereby releasing the clutch.

A second arm 52 of the bell crank lever is pivotall'v connected br a rod 53 with aspring not. shown contained in a spring cylinder 54, the latter being pivotally anchored at one end to a rod 55 secured to a portion of the framework 56. Thus the spring in cylinder 54 normally tends to move the lever arm 52 in a clockwise direction, as shown in Fig. 3, againstthe action of'the spring46.

A catch 58 is pivotally mounted on pin 59 secured' on bracket 48, said catch normallyT tending to engage behind a shoulder 60 formed on a lever 61. The lever 61 is pivotally mounted on a pin 62 secured to the bracket 48 and the clockwise rotation of lever 61 is limited by a shoulder 63 ,formed on said bracket 48. An arcuate connecting link 64 is pivotally connected to the catch58 and lever arm 52. said link tending to cause the cat-ch 58 to follow the movements of lever arm 52. A control arm 65 is pivotally sus pended from a connecting rod 66 and said arm 65 is also loosely connected by a pin and slot connection 67 to an arm of the lever 61. A shoulder 68 formed on the arm 6 5, engages under a lug 69 formed on the lever 61 so that when the rod 66 and arm 65 are moved vertically by a mechanism to be hereinafter described, the catch shoulder 68 lifts the lever 61 so as to free catch shoulder 60 from the catch 58, thus permitting the actuation of clutch member 36 and therot-ation of shaft 35 through one revolution. The clockwise rotation of the lever arm 52 is limited by a stop lug 70 formed on a bracket 71. A roller 72 is rotatably supported on the lever arm 52,

. said roller being positionedin the path of travel of a cam 73 secured to the shaft 35. Thus., one rotation of the shaft 35 will cause lever 75 is secured to a shaft 77, said shaft being rotatably mounted in suitable bearings secured to the framework of the machine. The lower end of lever 75 is provided with a curved surface 76 which is adapted t-o engage the forward end of plaster boards 78, as said boards move along the setting conveyor 12. A lever 79 is also secured to the shaft 77 and the outer end of said lever is connected by a spring 8O to the frame- 'work of the conveyor 12 soit-hat said spring normally tends to urge the shaft 77 to rotate in a clockwise direction as seen in Fig. 5, said rotation being limited by a stop arm 81 on said shaft enga ging against an adjustable stop screw 82 formed on a bracket 83.

A catch arm 85 is secured to the shaft 77 and the outer end of said catch arm is adapted to engage above a catch shoulder 86 formed on a link 87 which is pivotally suspended from a connecting rod 88. By a suitable alteration of parts, the link 87 may extend upwardly. if desired. While the plaster.- board 78 is passing underv the lever 7 5. the catch arm 85 is in the position shown in Fig. 4 but when said plaster board leaves the curved surface -7 6 of said lever, the action of spring 80 causes the partial rotation of the shaft 7 7 so that catch arm 85 moves the link 87 downwardly so as to cause the downward movement of rod 88. The link 87 is connected by a pin and slot connection 90 to the bracket 83. The shoulder 86 is normally held in engagement with the end of catch arm 85, by a spring 92 connect-ing said link 87 with the bracket 83. The position of the. link" 87 is adjusted by means of a set screw 93 on the bracket 83.

Rod 88 is pivotally connected to an arm of a bell crank lever 94, the latter being pivotally connected by pin 95 to fixed framework 96. The other arm of said bell crank lever is connected by a rod97 to one arm` of a bell crank lever 98. The lever 98 is pivotally connected by a pin 99 to the framework 96 and the other arm thereof is pivotally connected to the upper end of rod 66. .A spring 100 connects a collar 101secured to rod 97 to the framework 96, so as to normally urge the rod veyor 10. For plaster boards having a width of say 48", it will be necessary to move the transfer conveyor 16 to only two positions relative to the inclined conveyor 10.

For plaster boards havin a comparatively narrow width such as 32"I 1t is preferable to have three lines of plaster boards moving down the inclined conveyor 10. For this reason, the gear 33 and pinion 34 are in the ratio of 1:2 so that for every revolution of the shaft 35, the shaft 31 makes half a revolution. For thse boards of narrow width, it is also necessary to omit every third movement of the transfer conveyor 16 so that the plaster boards 78 go directly through from conveyor 12 to the center of inclined conveyor 10. For this purpose, a cam 105 is secured to shaft 31, and a lever 106 is pivoted on pin 47, the lower end of said lever being provided with a fixed pin 107 which engages in a groove 108 formed in said cam 105. A lever 110 is pivotally connected by means of pin 111 to the upper end of lever 106, and one end of lever 110 is in the form of a pin 112 which normally engages in a slot 113 formed in arm 65. A weight 114 is provided on the end of lever 110, said weight tending to normally urge pin 112 to rotate in a counter-clockwise direction as seen in Fig. 3, said rotation being limited by the upper end of slot 113. For 32" boards, the cam groove is so designed that for every third movement of the transfer conveyor 16, lever 106 is moved in a counter-clockwise direction as seen in Fig. 3, thus withdrawing pin 112 from slot 113 and causing the weight 114 to move lever 110 in a counter-clockwise direction, said movement being limited by aston pin 116 formed on lever 61. When the pin 112 is in position against the pin 116, the continued rotation of the cam 105 causes pin 112 to push the arm 65 outwardly until shoulder 68 disengages from the catch 69, so that a periodical movement of the transfer conveyor 16 is omitted, and the plaster boards 78 move straight along the transfer conveyor 16 and onto the center of the inclined conveyor 10, thus providing for three lines of boards moving along the inclined conveyor 10.

For boards having a 48 width, the omission of every third periodical movement of the transfer conveyor 16 is not necessary and therefore the pin 116 is shifted manually into position 118 so that the end of pin 112 never leaves the slot 113 and can, therefore, not cause an omission of movement of the transfer conveyor 16. For the 48" board, the pins 29 are also shifted into new holes 120 in cranks 30 so that the throw of connecting rods 27 is decreased and the transfer, conveyor 16 is not moved as near the edges of inclined conveyor 10.

In operation the plasterboards 78 move along the setting conveyor 12 under the action of driven rollers 14 and pass under the curved surface 76 of lever 75 thus raising said lever into the position shown in Figs. 4 and 5. After the plaster board 78 passes from underneath the lever 75 and onto transfer conveyor 16, said lever 75 moves downwardly under the action of spring 80 to the position shown in dot-and-dash lines in Figs. 4 and 5. This movement of lever 75 causes catch 85 to move link 87 and rod 88 downwardly, thus actuating bell crank lever 94, rod 97, bell crank arm 98, rod 66 and lever 65 and raising lever 61 so that catch 58 is disengaged from shoulder 60. The bell crank lever arm 52 now moves in a clockwise' direction as seen in Fig. 3 under the action of the spring cylinder 54, thus causing lever arm 49 to move the clutch 36 into operative position and cause the rotation of shaft 35 and pinion 34 through 360, and gear 33 and cranks 30 through 180 of rotation. The connecting rods 27 simultaneously move transfer conveyor 16 along track 24 to -a second position so that the plaster board 78 on leaving transfer conveyor 16, is deposited upon one side of inclined conveyor 10. During the downward movement of link 87 under the action of'catch arm 85, said arm 85 is completely cleared from the shoulder 86 so that link 87 again moves upwardly under the action of spring 100, and lever 65 moves downwardly, thus permitting the downward movement of lever 61 under the action of gravity. Cam 73 then engages roller 72 and raises catch 58 to a position where said catch engages behind shoulder 60.

When the boards are manufactured of comparatively narrow width, such as 32 inches, every third movement of the transfer conveyor 16 is omitted so that boards are delivered in three lines to the inclined conveyor 10. This omission of a movement of transfer conveyor 16 is accomplished by a cam 105 on shaft 31 which operates lever 106 at a predetermined interval so that pin 112 is drawn back from slot 113 and said pin 112 is moved in a counter-clockwise di.- rection, as seen in Fig. 3, under the action of weight .114, said rotation being limited by pin 116. Pin 112 now pushes arm 65 outwardly into the dot-and-dash position as shown in Fig. 3 so that the departure of a plasterboard 78 from beneath the lever 75 will not cause the shoulder to be disengaged from catch 58, thus preventing the movement of transfer conveyer 16 and allowing the plaster board 78 to move directly along said transfer conveyor onto the center line and center rollers 11 of the inclined conveyor 10. The next upward movement of arm then causes pin 112.to fall again into slot 113 and permits the next plaster board to actuate the transfer conveyor 16 and move the plaster board to one side of the inclined conveyor 10. It should be understood that where clockwise or counter-clockwise movements are specified, the movements may be reversed with suitable alteration of parts.

IVhile the above description discloses a certain embodiment of my invention, I do not wish to limit myself precisely to these details since, manifestly, the same can be considerably varied without departing from the spirit of the' invention as defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1. In a board transfer device, a setting conveyor, a kiln feed conveyor spaced apart from said setting conveyor, a transfer roller conveyor between said setting conveyor and kiln feed conveyor, and automatic means controlled by the movements of the boards along one of said conveyors adapted to move said transfer conveyor at predetermined inter vals while said boards move along said transfer conveyor so as to deliver boards onto said kiln feed conveyor in different predetermined positions.

2. In a transfer device, a series of roller conveyors, one of said conveyors being movable bodily relative to a second conveyor and having a series of rollers, a` clutch, driving means associated with said clutch, means associated with the clutch and the movable conveyor adapted to shift the conveyor when the clutch is actuated, and control means operated by the movement of sheet material along said conveyors for automatically actuating said clutch at predetermined intervals and causing the movement of said movable conveyor relative to the second conveyor so as to deliver said sheet material to dif-l ferent predetermined positions on said second conveyor.

3. In a transfer device for sheets of material, a series of roller conveyors, a crank shaft, a crank on said crank shaft connected to one of said conveyors, and means operated by said sheets for automatically and periodically substantially rotating said crank shaft so that said conveyor is moved bodily transversely relative to a second conveyor by said crank.

4. In a transfer device, a series of roller conveyors, means for moving one of said conveyors bodily relative to a second conveyor, means for rotating the rollers of said movable conveyor so as to move sheets of material over said conveyor, and control means actuated by the movement of sheet material for automatically and periodically causing the movement of said movable conveyor, thus delivering said sheets of material to different positions on the second conveyor.

5. In a transfer device, a series of conveyors adapted to move sheets of material1 a lever located in the path of travel of the said sheets of material, said lever being adapted to be reciprocated by said sheets, a clutch, driving means adapted to move one of said conveyors relative to a second conveyor, and connecting means between said lever and said clutch4 adapted to intermittently connect said clutch with said drivin means so as to cause the movement of said movable conveyor and deliver sheets of material to di'erent positions on said second conveyor.

6. In a transfer device, a series of conveyors, a crank shaft, a crank on said crank shaft connected to one of said conveyors and adapted to cause the movement of said conveyor relative to a second conveyor, means for rotating said crank shaft intermittently, a cam on said crank shaft, and means associated with said cam adapted to cause the periodic omission of an intermittent rotation of said crank shaft, whereby said movable conveyor remains stationary during said periodic omission.

7. In a transfer device, a series of conveyors, means for moving sheets of material along said conveyors, means for moving one of said conveyors bodily relative to a second conveyor, a shaft adapted to be rotated intermittently, control means actuated by the movement of said sheets of material and adapted to cause the periodical rotation of said shaft, connecting means between said shaft and said movable conveyor adapted to move said conveyor, and a cam on said shaft adapted to restore said control mechanism to normal position after the movement of said movable conveyor.

8. In a transfer device, a series of conveyors, a shaft, a crank associated with said shaft, a connecting rod connecting said crank to one of said conveyors, means for rotating said shaft so as to cause the movement of said conveyor relative to a second conveyor, said conveyors being adapted to convey sheets of material from one conveyor to another conveyor, said movable conveyor bein adapted to deliver sheets of material t'o di erent po- 'sitions on the second conveyor, and means for varying the throw of said crank so as to vary the movement of said movable conveyor to accommodate sheets of different Widths.

9. In a transfer device, a series of conveyors, means for moving one of said conveyors relativeto a second conveyor so as to deliver sheets of material from said'movable conveyor to different positions on a second conveyor, control means adapted to cause the omissionI of certain movements of said movable conveyor so as to vary the number of delivery positions to the second conveyor, and manual means for adjusting said control means to cause uninterrupted movements of said movable conveyor.

10. In a transfer device, a series of roller conveyors, a shaft, a crank on said shaft connected to one of said conveyors, a clutch associated with said shaft, a lever located in the path of travel of sheet material passing over said conveyors, connecting means between said lever and said clutch adapted to cause the intermittent rotation of said shaft and the periodical movement of said movable conveyor so as to deliver sheets of material to different positions on a second conveyor, and means associated with said connectin means to periodically prevent connection etween said connecting means and said clutch for omitting certain movements of said movable conveyor.

11. In a transfer device, a series of con- 16 veyors, automatic means for moving bodily one of said conveyors relative to a second conveyor so that sheets of material are delivered from said movable conveyor to the second conveyor in different positions, and

20 control means adapted to omit certain movements of said movable conveyor so as to vary the position of delivery of sheets to said second conveyor.

12. In a transfer device for continuously moving spaced material head on to a given place, a series of conveyors in line, means on said conveyors for continuously urging said material forwardly, one of said conveyors being of greater width than another, and a con'- veyor intermediate and substantially se arating said conveyors of different widths a apted to reciprocate bodily at predetermined intervals transversely of said conveyors of di'erent widths, said reciprocating conveyor receiving the material from said narrower conveyor 1n one path and delivering the same to a plurality of paths on said conveyor of greater width, whereby said material is shifted bodily from a single path into a .plurality 40 of paths while continuously travelling in an unswerving forward direction.

13. In a transfer device, a series of conveyors adapted to continuously move sheet material in a given direction, one of said conveyors being movable bodily transversely relative to a second conveyor to deliver sheets in a plurality of paths on said second conveyor, a clutch actuated at predetermined intervals, driving means associated with said clutch, a

crank shaft means for rotating said shaft upon actuation of said clutch, and a rotating crank on said shaft operativel associated with said movable conveyor an adapted to completely shift said movable conveyor from one position to another position with each rotation.

CARL ABSMEIER. 

